The police wanted a one-way door policy from 3am at his Courtenay Place bar, Siglo.

If it had been a smaller business, "we would have no question taken the deal with the police. No question," he said.

"We would have said 'we can't fight it, we can't afford to fight it," he said.

Mr Mills said that heavy-handed approach meant the relationship with the police was falling apart.

"The biggest issue... is if there's a back door in your bar, and someone's drunk and playing up, you try and get them out the back door," he said.

"You don't want to get them out the front door: the police will start writing down, 'well that's five people taken out of this bar'."

"You should be able to see the policeman on the street and say, 'we've got a person that's causing a bit of trouble, can you help us get him out?'."

The Hospitality Association's Wellington president Jeremy Smith said even though alcohol-related harm and crime was coming down, the police wanted all bars and restaurants closed by midnight.

"People are actually scared to call the police.

"Because instead of the police coming to help in a situation that needs their involvement, you're scared that it's going to end up as a black mark against your name and will be held against you when you go for license renewals."

"Where there are concerns about licensees and or the conditions they operate under, Wellington police will raise the matter with the both licensees as well as the DLC, who will make final decisions," he said in a statement.

The Medical Officer of Health did not respond to a request for comment.